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melissa l. khong A Neo-Beethovenian Approach? The Case of Guillaume Lekeu’s String Quartet While some scholarly attention has been given to the later works of the Franco-Belgian composer Guillaume Lekeu (1870-1894), the early chamber music of 1885-1888 has hitherto been neglected. In this paper, I focus on Lekeu’s String Quartet in Six Movements (1888), curiously void of the lavish Romanticism that had characterized Lekeu’s preceding works and adopting instead the Classical language of the late-eighteenth century. Through comparative analyses, I argue that Lekeu’s String Quartet can be acknowledged as a direct salutation to Beethoven’s String Quartet in B b Major, Op. 130, and illustrates a radical revival of the Beethovenian string quartet as a genre in itself. On the morrow of his twenty-fourth birthday, Guillaume Lekeu (1870-1894), stricken with typhoid fever, passed away in his parents’ home in Angers, France.1 In his last extant letter, addressed to his student Robert Brussel, Lekeu described his predicament, frustrated by his confinement yet optimistic in his recovery, ‘Il n’y a rien de dangereux là-dedans, mais si vous saviez combien c’est désagréable d’être cloué dans un fauteuil, incapable de suivre une idée...’ At the time, Lekeu was working on a Piano Quartet in B Minor, a consuming project that he had struggled with repeatedly to complete. The composition of the first movement had taken close to eight months, and Lekeu, rather than being ‘confined to a chair,’ was eager to complete three additional movements in time for a performance by Eugène Ysaÿe’s quartet. Sadly, illness befell and the young Belgian composer never did progress beyond the second movement.2 Left 1 Versions of this paper were presented at the 14th International Conference of the Dutch-Flemish Society for Music Theory and ‘The Franco-Belgian Violin School from G.B. Viotti To E. Ysaÿe’ conference in La Spezia, 9-11 July 2012. My sincere thanks to the participants of these conferences for their insightful comments and appreciation. In particular, I would like to thank Allan Atlas, Sylvia Kahan, and Luc Verdebout for their encouragement and invaluable advice. 1 The Belgian composer Guillaume Lekeu was born on 20 January 1870 in Heusy, south of Verviers. Despite the transient 24 years of his life, Lekeu produced a commendable breadth of works, diverse in genre and instrumentation, which amply demonstrate his deep sensitivity, musical aptitude, and passionate spirit. The year 1885 marked Lekeu’s commitment towards a serious compositional career and his encounter with the music of Bach, Mozart, Haydn and most significantly, Beethoven. The works of the latter, to whom Lekeu referred as ‘Le Dieu’ or ‘Le Vieux’, provided the principal source of musical inspiration for the young Belgian, surpassing those of Wagner, whom Lekeu idolized as well. In September 1889, a year after Lekeu’s move to Paris, he began fugue and counterpoint studies with César Franck. Franck’s tragic accident in November 1890 left Lekeu in danger of being musically orphaned, had it not been for Vincent d’Indy who took Lekeu under his wing. By 1891, Lekeu had matured considerably as a composer. His sincere enthusiasm and dedication to his craft aroused the respect and admiration of many, including the violinists Eugène Ysaÿe and Mathieu Crickboom, the art critic Octave Maus, secretary and founder of the influential group Le Cercle des XX, the writer Maurice Pujo, and the Symbolist painter Carlos Schwabe, all of whom saw in Lekeu a promising future as a leading composer of the twentieth century. 2 The second movement of the Piano Quartet was eventually completed by d’Indy, who added seven and a half measures. The work, in its two-movement form, was premiered in Brussels on 23 October 1894 by Mathieu Crickboom (violin), Paul Miry (Viola), Henri Gillet (cello), and Louise Merck (piano). See the catalogue of works in Guillaume Lekeu, Correspondance, ed. Luc Verdebout, Liège: Mardaga, 1993, 394. dutch journal of music theory, volume 18, number 1 (2013) TvM_18_#1_jan_2013_6.indd 29 29 18-02-13 12:47 a neo-beethovenian approach? the case of guillaume lekeu’s string quartet incomplete at the time of Lekeu’s death, the unfinished Piano Quartet, together with over a hundred other works, bears testament to the musical depth and potential of Lekeu’s output. In recent years, the works of Lekeu have been increasingly championed, performed, and disseminated, particularly in Europe. The Violin Sonata in G, arguably Lekeu’s bestknown composition, has more or less entered the standard violin repertoire. In addition, scholars have focused on Lekeu’s mature output, namely the Violin Sonata, the unfinished Piano Quartet, and Andromède, a cantata written for the Prix de Rome in 1891.3 Yet, it was in the early chamber works of 1885-1888 that Lekeu had begun to find a unique musical expression, drawing upon aesthetics deeply rooted in the philosophy of Schopenhauer, Symbolist literature, and fin-de-siècle Parisian culture. Stylistic aspects, including his abundant use of lavish chromaticism and a fascination towards the tragically morbid, could be traced to a post-Wagnerian society and the uprising Symbolist trend, and were already inherent in these early compositions. During his early period, the form of the string quartet seemed to carry ideal musical and aesthetic possibilities for Lekeu, more so than any other genre he had engaged with at the time, including solo piano and piano-violin works. For Lekeu, the string quartet as a genre was not only a musical vehicle, but one that could effectuate Lekeu’s vision of a true French drama. In a letter to his childhood friend, Marcel Guimbaud, Lekeu enthusiastically put forth his desire to return to the more intimate chamber works of Beethoven – the string quartets in particular – while abandoning the symphonic form revolutionized by Berlioz which Lekeu found too disorganized. Following similar musical and nationalistic aims instilled by the founding of the Société Nationale de Musique in 1871, Lekeu, who had by then moved to Poitiers with his family, sought to establish ‘un vrai drame en français’ that would not merely be an imitation of Wagner’s music dramas but rather one that drew from a French dramatic tradition. At the center of Lekeu’s grand vision stood the string quartet form. It was surely the interactive aspect of this genre, and its ability to suggest dialogic texture, that attracted Lekeu in his attempt to create a more and more personal form of the string quartet based on the artistic kinship uniting the four musicians and that derives from the late [string] quartets of the Old One [i.e. Beet hoven], all the while remaining essentially and absolutely different.4 Lekeu’s first attempt at fulfilling this artistic project was the Méditation for string quartet (1887), an emotionally-charged one-movement work based on an explicit and highly Romantic narrative.5 The work’s formal dependence on an extra-musical narrative 3 The formidable annotated collection of Lekeu’s letters, amassed by Luc Verdebout, remains the most valuable resource in Lekeu research. Nine additional letters from Lekeu to the composer Lodewijk Mortelmans, dating between 1891 and 1893, were later discovered by Verdebout and published in Verdebout, ‘Lettres de Guillaume Lekeu à Lodewijk Mortelmans’, Revue belge de Musicologie 57 (2003), 159-172. Also of significant importance is a collection of essays, Guillaume Lekeu et son temps: Actes du colloque de l’Université de Liège, ed. Philippe Vendrix, Liège: Société Liègeoise de Musicologie, 1994. 4 Letter to Marcel Guimbaud, dated 25 October 1887, in Lekeu, Correspondance: ‘une forme de plus en plus personnelle du quatuor à cordes basée sur la sympathie artistique unissant les quatre artistes, dérivant des derniers quatuors du Vieux, tout en étant essentiellement et absolument différente.’ Translation by the author. 5 This lengthy and detailed commentary, that forms the narrative basis of Lekeu’s Méditation, was written by Lekeu himself in a self-confessed decadent style. See Ibid., 449-451 for the entire commentary. The subject of this narrative is not a human figure but an inconsolable soul wallowing in its misery as it shuns the comfort of religious faith. The three main themes of the work correspond to the ‘thème de douleur’, a religious hymn, and the abstract depiction of ‘suffering poured out in melancholy.’ The appearances of these themes are dictated by the unfolding of the narrative, a device that could easily result in an incoherent musical structure. 30 TvM_18_#1_jan_2013_6.indd 30 18-02-13 12:47 dutch journal of music theory may have ironically brought it aesthetically closer to Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique; nonetheless, the Méditation was Lekeu’s first substantial work and it was explicitly linked to his desire to create a new form. Its originality was most apparent in Lekeu’s staunch disregard for a conventional structure or tonal layout, favoring instead a free, post-Romantic language and the use of contrasting textures to delineate an otherwise musically-incoherent form. The use of lush chromaticism, long phrases, and musictext relationship in this work established the basis of a unique musical style that would continue to develop in Lekeu’s later output and become representative of Lekeu’s musical aesthetic. Less than a year after the composition of the Méditation, Lekeu embarked on his first multi-movement work for string quartet.6 One could deduce from Lekeu’s artistic goals outlined above that Lekeu’s decision to compose a multi-movement string quartet was intricately linked to the project begun with the Méditation and would possibly employ a somewhat similar musical style. Thus, it is surprising that Lekeu chose instead to abandon his characteristic post-Romantic flair in this landmark work in favor of a more conservative language rooted in the tonal clarity and symmetrical phrasing of the eighteenth century. The use of an antique, sterile musical language is not only strikingly irrelevant to the trends of fin-de-siècle Europe, but is also anachronistic when placed in the context of Lekeu’s stylistic development. Also significant is the work’s layout in six movements, an architectural anomaly in the context of the Classical string quartet that brings to mind Beethoven’s own radical expansion of the four-movement tradition and, more specifically, Beethoven’s String Quartet in B b Major, Op. 130. While explicit references to the intention behind this decision are lacking in Lekeu’s correspondence,7 I believe that Lekeu’s decision to use a six-movement design for a genre as long-standing and traditional as the string quartet can be acknowledged as a direct salutation to Beethoven’s Op. 130.8 Furthermore, I will argue that Lekeu’s String Quartet was no mere student imitation of Beethoven’s, but rather, a unique assimilation of Beethoven’s styles from the Op. 18 set to the late quartets. Through his String Quartet, Lekeu not only demonstrates a thorough understanding of Beethoven’s artistic and musical workings, but in the process also generates a fascinating revival of the Beethovenian string quartet as a genre in itself. Beethoven’s string quartets appeared regularly in Lekeu’s correspondence since his decision in 1885 to consecrate his life to music. His spontaneous descriptions and analyses of these works, sometimes with a theme impulsively scribbled down, showed that he not only revered the string quartets for their artistic qualities, but that he also knew them However, Lekeu replaces a form dictated by melody and harmony by one structured around three principle categories of texture. In the Méditation, the organization of these textures governs the musical direction of the work, effectively tying it together as a whole. 6 Interestingly, there is no title indicated on the autograph manuscript. The title of ‘String Quartet’ can only be derived from the instrumentation and structural plan, which leave little doubt as to what Lekeu’s intention might have been. From here on, I will refer to this work as Lekeu’s String Quartet. 7 There is no mention of this String Quartet in Lekeu’s correspondence. While it is rare that Lekeu remains completely mute on a work’s compositional progress, it would be a mistake to suggest that the lack of mention is indicative of the work’s importance or perceived longevity. Lekeu likewise makes only one reference to the Adagio pour quatuor d’orchestre, arguably one of Lekeu’s most important works in his mature output, in which he describes the work as ‘still-born.’ 8 The overall structural similarity between Lekeu’s String Quartet and Beethoven’s Op. 130 has also been noted by Gilles Thieblot in Guillaume Lekeu, Paris: Bleu nuit éditeur, 2006, 34. While Thieblot does not explore this connection in detail, he acknowledges the similar character and tempo indications and draws attention to the inscription found at the beginning of the third movement, ‘Questo pezzo si dere [sic] trattare col [sic] più grand [sic] delicatezza’, which, its approximate Italian notwithstanding, makes a direct reference to the last movement of Beethoven’s Op. 18, No. 6, ‘La Malinconia’. 31 TvM_18_#1_jan_2013_6.indd 31 18-02-13 12:47 a neo-beethovenian approach? the case of guillaume lekeu’s string quartet thoroughly.9 Op. 130, 131, and 135 were mentioned most often in his letters, and Op. 132 in A Minor became the subject of a lengthy analysis written in 1890 by Lekeu himself.10 Clearly, these quartets held a special place for Lekeu and were – consciously or not – musical and artistic models upon which he would base his own works. When comparing the overall layout of Lekeu’s String Quartet with that of Op. 130, certain aspects of formal and tonal arrangements strike the eye as being uncannily similar. Both are six-movement works, in which each movement functions as a self-contained unit,11 and two movements from each quartet are nontraditional movements in the context of the Classical string quartet. Table 1 compares the structural layout of Lekeu’s String Quartet with that of Beethoven’s original Op. 130, i.e., the version with the doublefugue ending that was later excised and published as a separate work, the ‘Grosse Fuge’, Op. 133.12 Each string quartet contains an intermezzo-slow pair comprising of two types of character pieces, framed by a conventional four-movement structure (Table 1). Table 1 Structural and tonal layout of Lekeu’s String Quartet and Beethoven’s Op. 130, showing similarities in number of movements and placements of added non-traditional intermezzo-slow pairs. Lekeu – String Quartet Key Beethoven – String Quartet Op. 130 Key I. Allegretto quasi allegro G major I. Adagio ma non troppo – Allegro B b major II. Adagio sostenuto III. Capriccio. Poco allegro IV. Romance. Andantino molto moderato quasi andante V. Poco allegro e molto scherzoso VI. Finale. Allegro assai e appassionato B b major II. Presto B b minor Poco scherzoso D b major C minor IV. Alla danza tedesca – Allegro assai G major E b major V. Cavatina. Adagio molto espressivo Eb major E minor G major III. Andante con moto, ma non troppo. VI. Grosse Fuge B b major A look at the tonal plan of each quartet also reveals interesting correlations. In fact, if one considers the first two movements of Beethoven’s Op. 130 to form a singular tonality of Bb , the intervallic motions between the tonic keys of the first three movements in the respective quartets are identical (Table 2). While these similarities are only suggestive of 9 A humorous example can be found in a letter to Guimbaud, dated 12 August 1887, in which Lekeu writes out the opening theme of the Finale from Beethoven’s String Quartet in G Major, Op. 18, No. 2 to prove his knowledge of that particular Quartet. See Lekeu, Correspondance, 36. 10 This analysis can be found in Ibid., 453-458. It is by no means a traditional analysis of any sort. Rather, it resembles a commentary somewhat akin to that of the Méditation, and demonstrates Lekeu’s knowledge of Beethoven’s works in general with its references to the Ninth Symphony and the Missa Solemnis, Op. 123. 11 As Sterling Lambert points out, the presence of six self-contained movements in Op. 130 sets it apart from Op. 131 which, although designated as a seven-movement work, uses the third and sixth movements as a connection and an introduction respectively. See Lambert, ‘Beethoven in Bb : Op. 130 and the Hammerklavier’, The Journal of Musicology 25/4 (Fall 2008), 438. 12 If Lekeu did in fact use Beethoven’s Op. 130 as a possible model for his own String Quartet, it was likely the original Op. 130 with the fugue ending that Lekeu would have had referred to. Compare for instance the dramatic opening and subsequent quasi-fugal entries of the instruments in Lekeu’s Finale, which are more reminiscent of Beethoven’s intended Fugue finale rather than the substituted last movement. 32 TvM_18_#1_jan_2013_6.indd 32 18-02-13 12:47 dutch journal of music theory Lekeu’s using of Beethoven’s Op. 130 as a decisive model for his own String Quartet, they certainly present a tantalizing premise upon which further correlations may be made. Table 2 Intervallic relations between movements in each string quartet. (a) Lekeu’s string quartet m3 G - M3 tritone B - E - m3 C tritone B - D - M3 G - E - (b) Beethoven’s string quartet in B major, Op. 130 m3 M3 - G P4 E - B A closer look at the Finale of Lekeu’s Quartet reveals a curious, yet highly original amalgamation of motivic and structural features in the first and last movements of the original Op. 130. The opening dramatic flourish of an E b major triad, played in unison by the four instruments in Lekeu’s Finale, followed by the abrupt shift to G major with the entries of the cello and violin in a quasi-fugal manner, can be convincingly read to have an undeniable association with the original Fugue finale of Op. 130. True, Lekeu does not quote directly from the ‘Grosse Fuge’, and the two pieces embody completely different characters. However, the intensity generated by the ambiguity and tonal displacement of both openings, as well as their motivic succinctness produce a similar dramatic effect (Example 1). It is clear from what follows in both finales that Lekeu did not intend to create his own version of Beethoven’s monumental Fugue; the subsequent lyrical entrance of the cello becomes the thematic focus in Lekeu’s movement, unlike Beethoven’s Fugue, which explodes from its initial, saturated introduction. The opening flourish in Lekeu’s Finale thus adopts the role of dramatic gesture instead, and frames important sections of the movement. Example 1 Opening of Lekeu’s Finale from his String Quartet. Allegro assai ed appassionato Violin I ff con fuoco Violin II ff con fuoco Viola ff con fuoco Cello ff con fuoco p molto dolce e cantabile While the similarities between the ‘Grosse Fuge’ and Lekeu’s Finale end here, Lekeu proceeds to incorporate aspects of the first movement of Beethoven’s Op. 130. The form 33 TvM_18_#1_jan_2013_6.indd 33 18-02-13 12:47 a neo-beethovenian approach? the case of guillaume lekeu’s string quartet of Lekeu’s Finale is in itself rather succinct, and is in line with the preceding movements in terms of its thematic simplicity, clarity of structural sections, and a rather careful and conservative handling of developmental material. The Finale’s exposition is brief, presenting the opening flourish and the movement’s three main themes in a straightforward manner. While the opening flourish and the fugal entries of the first theme demonstrate a connection with the ‘Grosse Fuge’, as I have shown, the second and third themes are derived instead from the first movement of Op. 130. The second theme of Lekeu’s Finale is in fact a direct quotation of the opening of Op. 130, although used in an entirely different context and lacking the tonal ambiguity of Beethoven’s opening. Here, in Lekeu’s Finale, it is clearly rooted in E b major, a significant key region that takes on a dominant-tonic importance in the work. Nonetheless, the chromatic descent – B b , An , A b , G – of Lekeu’s second theme is a note-for-note quotation of Op. 130’s opening, and its puzzling irrelevance to the well-crafted thematic material of Lekeu’s Quartet makes this correlation more intentional than accidental (Example 2). Example 2 Note-for-note quotation of the opening of Beethoven’s Op. 130 in the second theme group of Lekeu’s Finale. Violin I pp Violin II pp pp Viola p appassionato Cello Further support of this observation can be found in Lekeu’s third theme, characterized by regular running quavers and a leap of a seventh, completely different from the previous themes in every way. The contrast between the second and third themes seems to re-enact the duality of the Adagio ma non troppo and Allegro sections in the first movement of Beethoven’s Op. 130. Indeed, Beethoven specialists have pointed out the striking contrast between these two sections in the Op. 130 Quartet, a device that takes on a thematic significance characterizing the first movement. Lekeu’s recreation of this duality, together with the precise motivic reference to Op. 130’s opening, strongly suggests that Lekeu intended to evoke crucial aspects of Op. 130 in the concluding movement of his own String Quartet. Before I proceed with the second part of my argument, I would first like to address the problem of musical quotation. The correct identification of musical quotation or, to a more abstract extent, musical intertextuality is rarely a simple or conclusive task, especially when explicit indications by the composer are lacking. In Lekeu’s case however, there is reason to believe that his String Quartet can be convincingly read to be based on aspects of Beethoven’s quartets. Lekeu’s main correspondent in his discussions of Beethoven’s music was his childhood friend Marcel Guimbaud, to whom the six-movement String Quartet was dedicated. The letters between these two men underline a confident familiarity with Beethoven’s works from both sides, and the exchange of knowledge gradually evolved into some sort of game in which one is challenged by the other to demonstrate his prowess 34 TvM_18_#1_jan_2013_6.indd 34 18-02-13 12:47 dutch journal of music theory with Beethoven’s music.13 Therefore, considering the evidence we have on hand, it is highly plausible that Lekeu had inserted hidden references to Beethoven’s Op. 130 with the expectation that Guimbaud, the work’s dedicatee, would easily recognize them. Despite Lekeu’s adoption of Beethoven’s Op. 130 as a model, this does not imply that Lekeu’s Quartet was but a mere student exercise in string quartet writing ‘in the style of Beethoven’. Rather, I believe that it was the Beethovenian string quartet as a genre that Lekeu was attempting to revive in his own work, and he did so by deftly incorporating aspects of both Beethoven’s late and early string quartets. The opening of Lekeu’s String Quartet provides an exemplary case for my argument. If Lekeu had intended his work to pay homage to a single quartet, or even a collective style of Beethoven, he could have adopted a more ambiguous or developmental opening that had come to characterize Beethoven’s treatment of themes in his late quartets. In fact, ambiguous openings were highly characteristic of Lekeu’s own style during this period, as evidenced most clearly in the Méditation, written less than a year before. Instead, Lekeu opens his String Quartet with a V7-I progression, one that is by no means as provocative as some of Beethoven’s harmonic progressions in his late period. The simplicity of the triad, a thematic feature that runs throughout Lekeu’s work, also evokes a highly Classical idiom and is reminiscent of Beethoven’s early use of thematic material, such as his clever manipulation of the G major triad in the Op. 18, No. 2 Quartet. Even the Scherzo movement in Lekeu’s Quartet more closely resembles the early Beethoven scherzo with its playful displacement of bar lines and mischievous teasing of expectations, completely void of the gravitational intensity that characterized Beethoven’s later scherzo movements.14 Indeed, Lekeu’s String Quartet has seemed to take on a rather hybrid nature permitting the co-existence of Beethoven’s various styles. Finally, Lekeu’s profound understanding of the inner workings within a Beethovenian string quartet can be most effectively seen in the cyclical return of the first movement’s second theme in the recapitulation of the Finale. Beethoven’s codas were often considered opportunities for the composer to reconcile the drama of the movement, or even the entire work, and had taken on a much greater importance than those of the high Classical period. Lewis Lockwood writes that the coda of Op. 130, together with some of Beethoven’s earlier codas, are intended to ‘fulfill thematic and motivic implications that have been left unresolved until the end of the movement, to serve the role that has been called thematic completion.’15 Lekeu seemed to have understood this particular concept of thematic completion with precocious finesse, for he does not transpose the second subject of the first movement, originally presented in E b major, to the home key of G major in the first movement’s recapitulation section. Rather, it remains in E b major, and thus, tonally unfulfilled. However, thematic completion of this theme comes at the end of the entire work, where it returns transformed, jubilantly, in G major at the onset of the Finale’s recapitulation. This transformation not only fulfills the tonal incompleteness of the second theme’s ‘recapitulation’ in the first movement but also stabilizes the theme’s initial syncopated presentation through the regular rhythm of the Finale’s principal theme in the viola and cello parts. Lekeu’s recall of this theme at the culminating point of the entire Quartet thus expands upon the concept of thematic completion, and demonstrates Lekeu’s early familiarity with cyclical unity, even before his studies with Franck (Example 3). 13 See Lekeu’s quotation of Beethoven’s G Major Quartet, Op. 18, No. 2 in the letter to Guimbaud cited above. 14 See for example the Scherzo movement of Beethoven’s String Quartet in B b Major, Op. 18, No. 6. 15 Lewis Lockwood, Inside Beethoven’s Quartets: History, Interpretation, Performance, Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2008, 203. 35 TvM_18_#1_jan_2013_6.indd 35 18-02-13 12:47 a neo-beethovenian approach? the case of guillaume lekeu’s string quartet Example 3 Second theme of the first movement, now transformed in G major in the recapitulation section of the last movement. Violin I f Violin II f Viola f Cello f Curiously, Lekeu did not return to the string quartet genre after this work. Perhaps he felt he had exhausted all possibilities of the genre, or perhaps he felt that, after this endeavor, the multi-movement string quartet belonged solely in the territory of Beethoven. Whatever his reasons might be, Lekeu’s String Quartet is a remarkable attempt in the preservation of Beethoven’s cumulative musical style, and the reconstruction of an archaic language against the backdrop of late nineteenth-century Europe. 36 TvM_18_#1_jan_2013_6.indd 36 18-02-13 12:47